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This afternoon we had our scarf ceremony with Pres & Sis Bendixsen.  Missionaries serving here receive these scarves at their departures.  Today it was our turn.

Then we loaded up our suitcases and headed to the airport.

Eveque Mel and his wife, Sylvie came to see us off.  Oh, how we love them.

After the final tears and farewells, we settled in to wait for our flight.  John enjoyed one last Burger King ice cream cone.    It’s really happening.  We are leaving.   I wish there were a way to be in two places at once.  This mission experience has been incredible.  A part of our hearts will  always be here, in a land we love with a people so dear to us.

Here are a few interesting things we saw today.  I love these drive by clothing stores!

I’ve got my eye out for mattresses (remembering the blind school dorms).

Bread for sale at the bakery.

A shoe store.

This lady is bagging sugar to sell.  Most commodities are sold in small portions for daily use. It’s hard to afford a big bag of anything, so most live day to day, getting by with small amounts.

A boy and his wheel!

These girls are going through our trash.  Every day, several times a day, children and adults in the street rummage through our trash, hoping for something they can use or eat.

About a week ago I wrote a post about the taxis here in Bamako.  The taxi we took this morning deserves it’s own mention–it’s one of the best yet!  I’m calling this one the “gorilla taxi,” a real treat!!  I’ve never seen seat covers quite like this.

Covering the front dash board with fake fur is very popular here, but this one wins the prize!  There was even fur coming out of the slot where a radio once lived!  I hope there’s a good shampoo someday in the future!

Our Muslim friends pray 5 times a day.  During Ramadan, prayers seem to be especially important, especially on Fridays.

Here’s a look inside this village mosque.  The men use the front of the building, the women use the back.  They are separated by a curtain.  You must take your shoes off before entering and women must have their heads covered.  It’s cool inside and it’s quiet, reverent.  I love being among these religious friends who turn their thoughts toward God as I also try to.

We started our day at the church meeting with Elder Bah and Elder Koffi.  We have a great Bamako District and we love talking about all the good happening here.

After that meeting, we met with Pres Sekou and Ibrahima and one of the contractors preparing a bid for some of our humanitarian projects here.

We saw this fan salesman as we headed home– he’s picked a good occupation for a place like this!